I Planned a Travel Editor's Destination Bachelorette — Here's How You Can Copy It

Nothing about a wedding should be low-key — but the bachelorette party needs to be high-key above all. We're talking C8 on the piano high-key. However, bringing together a group of friends from all over the nation to lavish the bride with love and laughter is no easy feat. Luckily, there are ways to ensure a seamless and epic bachelorette experience. Need proof? Just check out all the ways I plotted out a 16-person getaway to the teeny, tiny town of Matunuck, Rhode Island, using a few essential services that anyone can utilize the next time they're planning the getaway of all getaways. 

Get creative with the sleeping situation. 

Upon the maid of honor sending out invitations, we were thrilled to learn that this bride was just as loved as we thought, with almost everyone on the list quickly replying "yes." Then we realized what this meant in terms of space. While we had enough room for about 12 of those friends in the Airbnb home we rented (which, full disclosure, belongs to my parents), we knew we needed a little more space to stretch our wings. So, we called in the pros at Shangri-Lux. 

"Shangri-Lux levels up any gathering," founder Natalie Dunagan shared about her glorious glamping tents. "We travel to a place that is unique and meaningful to you, set up tents, and curate the experience and design to reflect the vision you'd like to share with your guests." 

As Dunagan suggested, a bachelorette party could include tents themed around the bride-to-be's love of a favorite destination or theme. "It's a unique experience and a way to bond with your friends in nature with comfort and style. Your guests can enjoy themselves without concern for getting somewhere at the end of the night." 

For us, Dunagan brought two tents to set up in the backyard — one themed like a Moroccan getaway, the other like an oceanside escape. Each piece inside the tents that made up these mini escapes was hand-sourced by Dunagan on her world travels, including the rugs, textiles, and lanterns from the souks of Morocco. Fitting, as our bride was none other than Travel + Leisure's own Nina Ruggiero.  

The best part was, those of us planning the bachelorette didn't have to lift a finger. In fact, we went out for a coffee as they set up. 

"With Shangri-Lux, everyone can just relax and enjoy the party. No one needs to bring a thing. We provide all the amenities needed to make the party comfortable and enjoyable, including comfy bedding and memory foam beds, lighting, rugs, seating, coffee makers, AC or heat depending on the season, fire pits, and games. Any tent can be customized according to the theme of the event," Dunagan said. And no worries if you don't live in Matunuck. Dunagan added, "Distance is not an issue as we can travel anywhere tents can be set up, from Massachusetts to Madagascar."

The only thing I'd do differently is make a lottery system for who gets to sleep in the tents because, as you can imagine, they were a rather popular option for our bachelorette weekend.

Ensure the perfect activity is locked.

Finding an excellent way to spend a day is critical for the ideal bachelorette bash. It's the time to make new memories with the bride and all her favorite people. But if you're planning a bachelorette from a distance, knowing all the available options can be hard. And that's where companies like Batch come in to save the day. 

"Right before COVID, I went on a bachelor party that was really unplanned and disorganized, which ultimately led to 10 guys just walking from bar to bar trying to figure out what to do in a city we'd never been to before. I couldn't stop thinking about how many other people must be in the same situation," Mike Petrakis, the founder and CEO of Batch, shared about why he created the service. "We had one big goal in mind: solve the pain points associated with group travel by making it super easy to plan a trip with friends and book fun experiences."

Petrakis and his team solve many of the pain points that come up throughout the planning process for a trip like this, including sending out invites and collecting responses in one place, getting everyone involved in the plans, and partnering with unforgettable vendors that you can book directly in-app. "We really just wanted to solve all of these issues in one app," he said, adding, "Now you can save the headache for the hangover."

For our New England–inspired trip, Let's Batch helped us plan a day with Wickford Boat Rentals, which took us out on "Lorelei," its absolutely beautiful Sabre 36 Express boat, along with its equally alluring 2004 Mainship Pilot 30 "Rendezvous," traveling out of the Wickford harbor, to Newport and Jamestown for a mini flotilla so we could splash around, cheers our Champagne, and laugh like kids again until the sun touched the horizon. 

"It really is one of a kind — where else would you go to solely book party experiences? Hibachi chefs, cocktail cowboys, a drag party bus. These are all pretty unique experiences that we found and put into the app," Petrakis said, noting the app currently hosts more than 3,000 experiences. 

Make a hard-to-get dinner reservation. 

As not just a born-and-bred Rhode Islander but a born-and-bred Matunuck kid, I knew there was one place and one place alone we had to dine in the region: Matunuck Oyster Bar. The restaurant, created by fellow local Perry Raso, is, simply put, the best dining in the state. But, with all that perfection can come epically long wait times. For our getaway, I simply had to call and beg six weeks in advance to have them slate us in for a massive table on the roof, which, thankfully, they were happy to oblige. We heartily ate dozens upon dozens of oysters (seriously, don't miss his homegrown Matunucks) and locally sourced seafood until we could eat no more. 

However, sometimes, picking up the phone to call isn't enough or simply isn't possible, which is where apps come in. Apps like OpenTable, Resy, and The Fork will all do the trick, including helping you snag last-minute and hard-to-find reservations in a snap. 

Dine at home in style. 

With two nights available on our bachelorette weekend, we chose to spend the second evening in. But, again, this is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the bride, which means this was no regular evening around the table. Instead, we worked with Batch once again to secure an evening with Newport Picnic Co., which came to set up an awe-inspiring table for us to gather around in the yard. We ordered a few pizzas from down the block (Matunuck Pizza Company, naturally) and leveled it up with a charcuterie board by Fig & Fromage and a few lobsters from the boats down the block. Once again, the company took care of everything, from setup to breakdown, so all we had to focus on was learning how to crack lobsters and fight over the last slice. 

Split it all up.

The most awkward part of any group gathering is ensuring everyone gets reimbursed. But this is the 2024 bachelorette season, which means there's definitely an app for that. You can choose to do it right in the Batch app or download another like Splitwise, where everyone can toss in their expenses and pay out what they owe at the end of the trip.

Other Must-have Apps 

While we certainly had a weekend chock-full of activities, there are still a ton of other easy ways to plot out your bachelorette adventure. Apps like Swimply will allow you to book out backyard pools near you, while ResortPass will help you snag hotel pool day passes in locations across the U.S. Need to find an ultra-specific activity? Try Airbnb Experiences or Get Your Guide for a locally hosted experience. No matter how much pre-planning you do, the most important tip of all is to sit back and enjoy it with the bride, who deserves to have the best weekend ever. You know, at least until the actual wedding.